Javier had summoned everyone in the villa to the main hall. Jasper was surrounded by the crowd, isolating him further.Jasper had shed his suit, unveiling his well-defined muscular physique beneath a thin white shirt. His masculine contours were visible through the fabric.Javier had wanted Jasper to be punished in front of everyone to humiliate him. To his dismay, Jasper won hearts by standing stubbornly in the middle of the crowd.The maids around him covered their mouths and blushed, struggling to suppress excited squeals. Even when Jasper was receiving a punishment, he looked as stunning as ever.When Javier noticed that Jasper had no intention of admitting his wrongdoing, he menacingly waved the whip in his hand, producing a bone-chilling, cracking sound as it struck the ground."Kneel!" Javier commanded.Jasper's eyes bore a defiant look as he sneered, "Do you think I would?""You—" Javier began."I'm standing right here. Whip me if you must. Spare me the nonsense," Jaspe
Alyssa reflexively held Jasper when he fell toward the ground. She was startled by the warm liquid on her hands. When she slowly unfurled her palm, she was shocked by the massive amount of blood.Then, she noticed the long, humiliating lash marks on Jasper's broad back. His white shirt was now stained red from the bleeding.Unable to contain her anger, her eyes flashed with fury as she questioned, "Jasper, are you okay?"Covered in sweat, he lay in her arms and muttered, "Are you worried about me?""Bullshit!" she blurted out without thinking. His heart raced with delight as he grinned. "Thank you, Lyse."Feeling angry, she hissed at him, "Shut up! You're badly injured. Stop talking. I don't want to hear a word from you."He smiled bitterly and whispered in her ear, "Okay."Alyssa's sudden appearance left everyone in astonishment. Lauren, who had witnessed the entire incident from the sidelines, welled up with tears at Alyssa's timely intervention.On the other hand, Sophia a
A powerful voice caught everyone's attention, and to their surprise, it was Newton who had arrived at the entrance with Ben by his side. Alyssa's presence was so commanding that neither Javier nor Sophia had noticed Newton's arrival."Grandpa!" Jasper and Alyssa exclaimed simultaneously, with Alyssa appearing particularly close to Newton.Sophia instantly grew flustered and sweated in Newton's presence."Dad, what brings you here?" asked Javier, his hand trembling in astonishment."If I hadn't made it here on time, my grandson would have been whipped to death," Newton growled in his wheelchair, looking authoritative. He shook emotionally at the sight of a heavily injured Jasper and anxiously asked, "Jasper, are you okay?""I'm fine, Grandpa." Jasper flashed him a reassuring smile. "Ben, please call my physician to attend to Jasper.""Of course, Mr. Newton," Ben replied, promptly making the call.Sophia tugged at Javier's shirt and shifted the blame toward Alyssa, saying, "Oh
The spacious hall remained quiet. Amused, Alyssa blinked and smiled.Jasper was cheered up by the animated look on her face and put behind the pain he was enduring. He fixed his eyes on her with a contented smile.In the meantime, a hushed astonishment gripped the onlookers as they watched Newton berating the current patriarch, Javier, in their presence. The public scolding was doubly humiliating, given Javier's prominent social standing. He had turned into a punchbag.Javier, nursing a wounded ego, flushed with anger and hissed, "Barry, please get everyone to leave the hall.""No! No one is allowed to leave before we settle this matter once and for all!" Newton declared with authority. When she was angry, Alyssa bore a striking resemblance to Newton, as if they were blood relatives."Dad, what do you mean?" Javier inquired, his brows furrowing in anger."It means exactly what you think it is!" Newton responded, his eyes half-closed as he taunted his son, "If you can bruise Jas
Alyssa widened her eyes in shock and stared at Jasper."KS Group has been competing against us for a long time. Your beloved Alyssa has been finding trouble with the Beckett Group, leading to stock price volatility and causing a loss of a few billion dollars!"We are finally hosting an event on the weekend to network with the high society of Solana City. As the company president, Jasper refuses to uphold the company's reputation and instead sides with our rival! How can I not be furious with him?"Alyssa's eyes widened even further in disbelief, and her heart skipped a beat."Is the event in question Sophia's birthday party?" Newton questioned.Javier replied, "Yes, it's her birthday party, and it's also a rare networking opportunity.""Alright, if Jasper isn't going, count me out.""What?" Javier's expression fell."Not only am I not attending, but I'll be joining Alice at Winston's wife's birthday party. What do you say to that? Are you going to beat me into submission, too?"
Alyssa, Jasper, and the others followed Newton back to Crescent Bay villa. Newton enthusiastically held Jasper and Alyssa's hands with each of his, refusing to let go at all.Not only that, he cussed out Javier and Sophia with creative, colorful language during the trip. Alyssa even worried that he would get exhausted from all the name-calling.After venting his anger, Newton started feeling bad for Jasper. He moaned and sighed about his poor grandson while discreetly trying to put Jasper's hand on top of Alyssa's.Jasper smiled at Alyssa from beside Newton as his heart exploded in joy. She noticed his passionate eyes but merely pressed her lips and ignored him.Her indifference worried him, and he tried to hold her hand. All of a sudden, the warmth in his hand disappeared as she had removed her hand.He gazed up and accidentally met her eyes. She was glaring at him as though she would skin him alive.Jasper resigned to the current situation. It seemed that he had failed to hold
Alyssa silently rolled her eyes at Jasper and mused, "Did I ask for your opinion, you jerk?""Go on, Alice! I believe you wanted to discuss this after careful consideration," Newton said gently."Grandpa, I hope you can step in and bring Lauren out of Seaview Manor to live with you," Alyssa voiced out without reservations because she treated Newton as family.Jasper concurred, "I agree."Alyssa shot back, "I never asked for your input."He narrowed his eyes and grinned. "It's okay. Even if you didn't ask for my opinion, I wholeheartedly support the idea."She glared at him irritatedly and clenched her jaw. She was so frustrated that she nearly left the car.Newton asked with concern, "Alice, did you suggest this because something happened to Lauren?""She is autistic, but her parents are busy taking care of the family and running a company. I'm afraid they don't have time to look after her, which will not help her condition at all."My hope is for Lauren to stay with you and e
Just as a spectacle had ended, another was about to start. As Javier and Jasper weren't home, Betty was emboldened to act out.She was convinced that Lauren had leaked news of Jasper's punishment to Newton. So, she marched to Lauren's room and dragged Lauren to the living room by her hair. She seemed to have picked up a thing or two from Javier and decided to reenact the punishment right away."B-Betty, let go of me! My scalp hurts!" Lauren pleaded, tears welling up as she felt the pain in her hair."You little traitor! Bitch! Oh, it hurts? Great. I'll teach you a lesson for selling out!" Betty cursed vehemently while delivering a stinging slap to Lauren's face."Ouch!"The loud slap echoed through the hall, leaving the household staff shocked and concerned for Lauren. However, they remained powerless to intervene as mere employees.Lauren covered her face and wept, "Betty, it's all my fault! I will not repeat my mistake!" She knew that no one would come to her help. She had wa